Electric safety device for elevators



2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

(No- Model.)

' H. HOLMES & O. PEGROSVENOE.

v ed Dec. 23, .1890.

Pat

I ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICE FOR ELEVATORS.

(No Model.) 7 2 SheetsSheet 2' H. E. HOLMES 860; P. GROSVENOR. ELECTRICSAFETY DEVICE FOR ELEVATORS.

No. 443,283. PatentedDec. 23, 1890.

UNITED STATES I P TENT OFFICE.

HERBERT E. HOLMES, OF VEST SPRINGFIELD, AND CHARLES F. GROSVENOR,

OF LUDLOVV, MASSACHUSETTS.

ELECTRIC SAFETY DEVICE FOR ELEVATORS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 443,283, dated December23, 1890.

Application filed April 14., 1890. Serial No. 347,740. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, HERBERT E. HoLMEs and CHARLES F. GROSVENOR,citizens of the United. States of America, residing at est Springfieldand Ludlow, respectively, in the county of Hampden and State ofMassachusetts, have invented new and useful Improvements in ElectricalSafety Devices for Eleva-' tors, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to devices for insuring the automatic stoppage ofa moving elevator on the necessity for such stoppage arising fromcondition of danger, said condition of danger insuring the establishmentof an electrical circuit for the control of electricallyoperateddevices,which in turn have a controlling connection with the power-shippingmedium of the elevator, and from the illustrations and descriptionhereinafter given and the terms of the subjoined claims the compositionof the invention may be more fully ascertained.

In the drawings, Figure l is an illustration in elevation of the usualarrangement of the elevator relative to the hoistway and thepower-shipping medium and of the electrically controlled devices withrelation to said power shipper. Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail view to behereinafter particularly referred to. Fig. 3 is a view illustrative ofcertain features of the invention in an application for operationsomewhat dilierent from the one shown in Fig. 1.

Corresponding characters of reference indicate the same parts in all theviews.

In the drawings, Arepresents a part of the elevator hoistway, and B apart of the elevatorcar, having a usual and well known form of safetyappliances thereon for operating between the car and the verticalratchet-rack a along each side of the hoistway, said safety devicescomprising the angular levers Z) I), each having an outwardly-extendeddog d on the end of its outer arm for projection to engage with saidratchetteeth, and the spring f for insuring the positive andinstantaneous move ments of the levers on the breakage of thehoist-rope.

0 represents the rod, which, however, may be a rope or chain, whichconnects either directly or through interposed connections with thebelt-shipper or other power controlling device, and as represented inthe particular illustration given the shipper-rod has such a limit ofmovement as to swing the crank-arm g from the position shown into theone indicated by the dotted line 10, the former position, for instance,being that assumed when the elevator is moving downwar(lly,'the latterassumed when the elevator is moving upwardly, and when the shipper-rodis moved to maintain said arm g intermediately of said extremity thepower will be thrown off and the elevator stopped.

' D represents a lever intermediately pivoted on a suitable support andlocated at some convenient point ad j acentthe said shipper-rod C, butat such a place in the hoistway that it will not likely beinterferedwith. This lever normally occupies the oblique position shown in fulllines at all times, except on such unusual occasions as the safetydevices hereinafter described are required to operate. Said lever is, byits connection with and control by such devices, constrained in saidoblique position. The spring 00 is applied to swing the lever from thesaid normal oblique position to the other oblique position indicated bythe dotted lines 12.

It represents a wheel having concentrically afiixed on the face thereofanother wheel j,

tate on the suitablysupported horizontal stud t.

The cord or flexible connection 7c is by its terminals connected, as at14: and 15, to lugs on the shipper-rod C at points above and be low thecompound wheel h j, said cord by an intermediate portion encircling therim of the wheel j, which rim is preferably grooved; and in order thatthere may be a reliable engagement between the said wheelj and the cordencircling it, the cord is at a suitable point such, for instance, asthe part of the periphery farthest from the shipper-rodconfined to theperiphery of the said wheel by a staple 16 or other means for positiveconfinement.

Z represents a cord which by one end is connectedto the end 17 of leverD and by its other end is connected to the portion, as the lower one 18,of the wheel 72. m represents anand said compound wheel is mounted toroother cord connected by its one end to the same end 17 of lever 1')and by its other end to another point, as 10, on the periphery, whichlatter point more or less nearly diai'netrically opposite to thebeforementioned one 18. Both of these cords are of equal length, and inthe arrangement stated, when the lever D is in its normal position andthe shipper-rod is thrown to its uppermost limit to cause the descent ofthe elevator, the said shipper-rod will through the cord 7; rotate thecompound wheel, so that the point 18 will have a posi tion to make tautthe cord 1, and the cord in will be slack. \Vhen the shipper-rod O isthrown to its other or lowermost limit, the cord 7.", moving downwardly,insures by its round turn connection with wheel j the semirotation ofthe compound wheel 7i j, and the cord I is then slackened and the cordan is taut, the latter cord then being more or less in the dispositionindicated by the dotted line 20. Now it willbe seen that whether theshipper-rod is at its upper or lowermost limitto insure either thedownward or upward travel of the elevator, one or the other of the cordsZor m between the wheel 71 and lever extremity 17 is taut, and that ateither of such times should the lever D under the action of theautomatic safety devices connected therewith be swung into thedotted-line position, said lever I) will, through whichever cord theretoconnected which is taut, insure an extent of rotation of the compoundwheel hj as will, through the connection of the cord 70 between same andthe shipper-rod, secure such a movement of the shipper-rod in its properdirection, either up or down, as the case may be, as to carry theshipper-rod to its midway position-that is, its position for throwingotlf the power and stopping the elevator; and, agaimjust as soon as thedifficulty occasioned by the slacking of the hoistingrope has beenovercome and the shipper-rod is again thrown to one or the other of itsextreme positions it, the shipper-rod, will cause a draft through thecord 7t upon the compound wheel, and the latter through one or the otherof the cords Z w, to effect a restoration of the lever D to its normalposition, the same being there maintained by the detent devicescomprised in the electrically-controlled contrivanees, which will behereinafter particularly described.

The usual and vertically-movable shaft or spindle at, having at itslower end the yoke 11 for engaging the angular lever l) at the top ofthe elevatoncar, and to which shaft a hoisting-rope is connected, has alaterally-extended collar g, which overlies a spring-contact piece 2*supported on the top of the elevator adjacent to but insulated fromanother contact-piece 25. An electric wire-2G extends from saidcontact-piece 2T to an electro-magnet 27, which is in proper proximityto the said lever D, said wire comprising in its run a battery orgenerator 28. To the other contact-piece another electric wire isconnected which passes to an intermediately-pivoted metallic armadjacent; to the electromagnct, said. lever 30 being by its spring 32normally maintained in the horizontal disposition shown, its one endthen resting upon the contactpiece 33, from which contactpicce a shortelectric wire 29 also passes to a proper connection with theeleetro-magnet 27. The armature -35 is comprised in onearm of theangular lever which is pivoted at its elbow, the other arm 36 of saidangular lever being adapted to have a latching engagement with thedetent device f for the disk 11, with which the lever l) has apin-aud-slot engagement, as at 37, said point of engagement being,relative to the normal position of the disk, a little oil? from avertical line axially intersecting the disk. The said disk n near itslower edge is provided with the laterallyextended stud 38. The saiddetent device 6 is shown in the enlarged view, Fig. 2, and consists ofan L-shaped or elbow lever comprising the members 30 and 14,0, rigidlyunited,

and the member l2,continuing in a line with the member 39 across andbeyond the elbow l3, and a suitable pintle or pivot-pin passes throughthe elbow and into the supporting plate or part r. The spring it isapplied between the members 39 and 42, which serves in a measure tomaintain the relative rela tions between the three members 39, .20, and42, shown, although the members 239 and 40 may be swung slightlyrelatively to the one 42, as indicated by the dotted lines in Fig. 2.The spring T5 is applied to the said detent device 6 forthe purpose ofswinging the same bodily in the direction indicated by the arrows 40 40'on the unlatching of the armature arm 36 from its engagement from themember 4:2. The left-hand arm at? of the lever 30 overlies a nose 48 ofthe disk 11..

The operation of these last-described parts may now be understood.Assuming that in the working of the elevator the hoisting-rope slackeus,the shaft n is immediately caused to move downwardly in relation to thetop of the elevator-car and the collar q will bear the contact-piece 24:upon the contaet-piece 25, establishing a circuit for the attraction bythe electro-magnet of the armature 235 thereupon, and the arm 30 willswing to free the detent f. The spring will impart a slight degree ofrotational movement to the detent. t as a whole, so that the extremityof the member 39, which directly acts as the stop for the stud 38, willbe swung out of its abutting engagement with said step. The spring a;will now swing the lever D and secure a partial rotation of the disk itand the move ment of the shipper-rod to its interi'nediate position tosecure the shipping of the power. The stop-stud 38, moving into theposition indicated therefor by the dotted circle 38, Fig. 1, will strikeagainst the member 40 of the detent t, which at that time lies acrossthe path of said stud and the detent is forced immediately back to itsnormal posi- ICC.

with the member 42 of the detent.

tion. (Shownin the drawings.) The move- 'ment of the disk will swing thelever 30 into the position indicated by the dotted lines therefor, whenthe circuit will be broken, the end of the said lever 30 passing offfrom the contact-piece 33, and the armature will fall to its normalposition and by its arm 36 latch The elevator having been immediatelystopped on the slackening of the rope, whereby it is not permitted toassume an oblique disposition and get awry in the hoistway, as otherwiseit would be liable to do, the travel of the elevator is then reversed byproperly throwing the shipper-rod to the corresponding limit therefor,and the slackening having been thus overcome, as is well known may bereadily done, the travel of the elevator in the original direction maybe resumed. Under the automatic operation of the electrically-controlleddevices above particularly described the disk remains with its stud inthe position indicated by 38*, the lever D being retained in itsdotted-line position, and the circuit-breaking 1ever 30 remains in theposition indicated therefor by the dotted lines in Fig. 1; but thenthrough the movement secured by the elevator attendant of theshipper-rod to one or the other of its extreme positions, through thecompound Wheel and cord mechanism h, j, k, and Z or m, the lever D iscaused to return to its normal position, it in turn carrying the disk uto its normal position, the stud 38 thereof as it passes downwardly uponthe top of the detent member 39 swinging said detent member, and alsothe one 40, slightly with relation to the then-latched member42, so thatthe said stud 38 may pass by the member 39 and assume its positionagainst the end thereof, the spring 44 then immediately returning theslightly-swung parts of the detent into their proper positions.

From the foregoing description of the mechanism comprised in the presentinvention it will be seen that the automaticallybperating devices arerestored to their positions for op eration directly the power-shippingmedium is so moved as to cause a travel of the elevator in eitherdirection, it obviously appearing that only when the elevator is movingis there any requirement for the protective intervention of the safetydevices. It will further appear from the foregoing that under normalconditions the extreme movements of the shipper-rod to insure the travelof the elevator either up or down and the placing of the shipper-rod inits median relation for the stoppage of the elevator in no way affectthe operative arrangement of the safety devices.

\Vhile in the foregoing description we have made particular mention ofthe establishment of the circuit to operate devices for insuring thestoppage of the elevator by means of the bearing of the one contact 24upon the other 25, occasioned by the flange or collar q movingdownwardly on the slackening of the rope, as

occasioned by the slipping of the belt orothcrwise, it will be fullyapparent that the said devices for controlling the shipperrod-arc asadvantageously operative on the forming of the circuit through otherineans-as, for instance, by means of appliances arranged in re lation tothe elevator-car or hoistway, substantially such as shown and describedin an application for Letters Patent of the United States filed by usMarch 26, 1890, Serial No. 345,313; and in the drawings, Fig. 3, anillustration is given for the purpose of making more clear in whatmanner the elevator traveling may be immediately stopped by a part of aperson or article on the elevator striking against a movable part on oneof the floors adjacent the hoistway. As the said 'movable part E isupwardly forced by being borne upon by a projecting part or person onthe elevator, the pin 50 is therewith moved to release the contact-piece24, so that it may bear upon the contact-piece 25,itbeing noted thattheelectrical wires 26 and 29 connect with these contact-pieces, and thusit willbe seen that it is quite immaterial in what particular manner thecircuit is established, for the operation of the parts directlycontrolled by the electro-magnet is in no way dependent uponcircuit-closing devices having any particular manner of operation.

What we claim as our invention is 1. In a safety device for elevators,the combination, with the power-shipping medium, as the shipper-rod C,of a lever D,pivotally supported, and a wheel axially mounted forpartialrotation, a cord having connections, at difierent points thereof withsaid power-shipping medium and also With said wheel, and cords connectedto different peripheral portions of said wheel and to said lever, andall whereby on the swinging of said lever said wheel will be rotated andthe shipper-rod will be moved to its intermediate or power-shiftingposition, substantially as described.

2. In a safety device for elevators, the combination, with thepower-shipper, of a lever D, pivotally supported, and a wheel axiallymounted for partial rotation, the cord l1aving connections at differentpoints thereof with said power-shipping medium and also with said wheel,and cords connected to different peripheral portions of said wheel andto said lever, as and for the purpose set forth, an electro-magnet andmechanism controlled thereby for restraining or controlling the.

swinging of said lever, contact-pieces properly applied in relation tothe elevator, the one adapted to be moved against the other, andelectric connections running from said contact-pieces to the saidelectro-magnet and comprising an electric generator, for the purposedescribed.

3. In a power-shipping mechanism forelevators, in combination, thepower-shifter rod, a swinging lever, and connections interposed betweensame and said power-shipper for insuring on the movement of said lcvcrthe placingof said power-shipper into its position for insuring thenon-opcration of the motive power, a disk with which said lever has anengagement, substantially as described, and provided with anabutmentpart, as 38, a detent 'for engagement with said abutment, and aspring 1L5, applied thereto for bodily swinging said detent, theelectromagnet, and the armature comprising by a suitable part thereof alatch for said detent, and the contact-pieces properly applied inrelation to the elevator, the one adapted to be moved. against theother, and electric cou nections running from said contact-pieces to thesaid electro-magnet and comprising an electric generator, for thepurgose described.

4:. In a safety device for elevators,the combination, with theelevator-car having the insulated and separated contact-pieces 2t and25, the one adapted to be moved to contact with the other, and the p rtq, movable on the slackening of the hoist-rope toinsure the contactingof said pieces, and the power-shipping medium, of an electro-magnet andwires running therefrom to said contact-pieces and comprising theelectric generator, and mo\'- able connections actuated by saidelectromagnet and interposed between same and said powenshipping medium,wherebyon the closing of the circuit the said movable connections willinsure the shifting movement of the said shipper.

5. In a safety device for elevators, the combination, with apower-shipping medium, of a swinging and spring-constrained lever, as D,and interposed connections between same and said power-shipping mediumfor insuring on its movement the placing of said medium into itsshifting position, a disk with which said lever has an engagement,substantially as described, and provided with the abutment-stud 3S andthe nose 4:8, and capable of a partial rotation, the pivtally-mounteddetent t, comprising the rigid members 3-) and and the member 42, andthe spring applied between the latter member and one of its fellows, forthe purpose set forth, and the spring for bodily swinging said detent,the springpressed circuit-breaking lever 30, having an arm in engagementwith said nose 48, and a contact-piece 33, on which said lever normallybears, the electro-magnet and its armature, which has a latchingengagement with said detent, contact-pieces properly ap' plied inrelation to the elevator, the one adapted to be moved against the other,an electric connection running from one of said contact-pieces to saidhitter-named electromagnet, an electric connection running from theother of said latter-named contactpieces to said circuit-breaking lever30, and another connection between said first-named contactpiece 323 andthe electro-magnet, there being comprised in the circuit an electricgenerator, all arranged for operation substantially as and for thepurpose described.

HERBERT E. HOLMES. CHAS. I GROSVJNOR.

\Vitnesses:

WM. 1 BELLoWs, G. M. CHAMBERLAIN.

